Saving Roger
by Capt Wolf
Summary: Joanne POV, Mark is the key to saving Roger, rated for language, not ot be confused with After Roger
1. Default Chapter

To Save Roger  
(rated for possible future content. M/R, Joanne POV, Mark is their key to saving   
Roger.)  
"I went to Harvard for this?" Joanne froze. "Deja vu, much?" Sighing, she finished   
folding the laundry and headed up the stairs.  
Mimi was in no condition to do her own laundry. Roger hadn't so much as shifted   
positions since she'd gotten sick, and Mark wouldn't leave Roger. Collins and Maureen   
worked long hours every day just to be able to keep them all alive, so Joanne was left with the   
domestic chores. Her own work was done via cell phone and the occassional business dinner.  
"Thank God for Steve," she thought as she kicked the door to Mark and Roger's   
apartment open. Dropping the basket of clothes next to the door, Joanne headed into Mark's   
room to find the filmmaker lying on the bed, hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling.   
Silently, tears trailed down his cheeks.  
Without moving, Mark said, "It's not fair Joanne. The one person who was able to   
reach Roger, and now she's slowly slipping away."  
Sitting on the bed next to him, Joanne nodded. "I know, Mark, I know." She paused   
thoughtfully. "I think one of us needs to be able to reach him, the way Mimi did. But the only   
people he'd be even vaguely interested in are me and Maureen, and, well. You know how that   
would work."  
Mark opened his mouth as if to say something, then shut it. He tried again, but with the   
same result.  
"Mark? Just spit it out already."  
He sighed. "It's just that there is someone else, but it would require telling you   
something no one but Roger and I knows."  
Joanne put her hand lightly on his chest. "You know I won't say anything to anyone."   
At Mark's look, she added, "No, not even Maureen."  
Mark shifted nervously, then nodded. "ALright then. You know me and Roger have   
been friends since high school, right? Well, not being the athletic type, we were a bit   
more...uh...active in figuring out who and what we were. Neither of us wanted to sit alone and   
figure it out in our heads. So we made an agreement." He paused.  
"What kind of agreement?" the lawyer pressed.  
"That if we didn't chicken out in a week, we'd meet at his place when his parents   
weren't home and...experiment."  
Joanne blinked. Everyone who'd ever met Mark had questioned his sexuality. But   
Roger...Roger being gay, or even bisexual, had never entered her mind.  
"So the following Saturday, his parents went on vacation. An hour after they'd pulled   
out of the driveway, Roger and I were sitting in his basement, awkwardly summoning our   
courage. Finally, we each took a deep breath and...well, we kissed. For awhile. Neither of us   
was anxious to stop. When we did, we agreed that it was definately not a bad thing." He   
sighed. "It never went further than some clumsy groping, and we both agreed that we were still   
attracted to girls. But we also agreed that this was very desirable. My point is, I'm not sure   
about him and his thoughts on the subject, but I know I've always had feelings for him."  
Joanne sat and thought for a moment. Thinking back, she remembered the occassional   
longing glance cast in Roger's direction when the filmmaker thought no one was looking. Come   
to think of it, there were a few times she'd swear on her bar exam that Roger had given Mark   
similar looks, though fewer and far between.  
Grinning, Joanne patted on Mark's chest. "Leave it to me. You're our key to saving   
Roger, and I'm gonna make sure it works. 


	2. Part 2

Saving Roger, Part 2  
The end comes... what will happen?  
  
"Steve? Joanne. The Garrett case." For the second day in a row, Joanne found herself   
repeating history. Luckily, Steve was very good at his job, and Joanne had just hung up the   
phone when Maureen came pounding down the stairs.  
"Joanne. Upstairs. Now." There was no doubt in the lawyer's mind what was   
happening. Together, they raced up the stairs.  
As they entered the apartment, only Collins looked up. Roger, tears streaming, has all   
his attention fixed on Mimi. Mark, according to plan, was standing behind Roger, hands on the   
songwriter's shoulders. Joanne and Maureen stood at the opposite end of the couch from   
Collins.  
While the friends watched sadly, Mimi coughed terribly. She managed to catch her   
breath long enough to look at Roger and whisper, "I love you." It was long after that.  
Everyone stayed silent. Maureen buried her face in Joanne's shoulder as the lawyer   
wrapped her arms around her. Collins wept openly. Mark and Roger froze as if statues.  
Then, as if reality had just hit him, Roger lept, howling, to his feet. Mark and Joanne   
glanced at each other, having anticipated something like this. Joanne nodded and Mark turned   
to Roger.  
"Roger, stop. There's someone else who loves you as much as Mimi did. Listen to me,   
Roger."  
But the songwriter wasn't listening. Joanne muttered, "Here goes nothing." Before   
Maureen could ask what she was talking about, Mark went to Roger, took his face between his   
hand, and kissed him soundly.  
Silence returned. Collins' jaw dropped, Maureen lookd stunned. Mark looked at his   
songwriter, afraid but not about to apologize. And Roger just blinked.  
Finally, Mark couldn't take it anymore. "Roger, say something. Good, bad, indifferent,   
just say something."  
A few minutes longer Roger just stood there. Then, in a tiny voice, he said, "I - I - I   
love you, too." The silence continued a few seconds, then Mark opened his arms and Roger   
rushed into them.  
With a small, sad smile, Joanne led Maureen into the kitchen, motioning for Collins to   
follow.   
"You were in on the whole thing, weren't you?" Maureen asked. Joanne just smiled.  
Collins shook his head. "I'd always wondered about Mark, but not Roger." He tapped   
his head. "Guess the gaydar still had a few glitches." That earned him a few giggles. "So what   
exactly was the object of this little plan?"  
Joanne shrugged. "We needed someone who could reach Roger the way Mimi did. If   
we didn't find someone, he would've gone insane with grief."  
"But Mark? How did he get chosen?" Marueen scratched her head quizzically.  
Joanne refused to answer that question. She'd told Mark she wouldn't tell, and she   
wasn't about to go back on that. Besides, how didn't matter. It worked. Roger had someone   
he loved, who loved him back, and wasn't susceptible to every germ. Mark was finally happy.   
He would eventually have to deal with Roger's inevitable decline and, ultimately, his death, but   
they had some time to spare.  
Saddened by Mimi's departure, the lawyer was still glad that they would all be okay for   
awhile. At Maureen's questioning look, she smiled and said, "We're okay." 


End file.
